1871-1900 Yaquina Head Lighthouse Letter books

(Copy)

United States Senate. Washington, D.C.

April 27, 1907.

Hon. Oscar S. Straus,

Secretary of Commerce and Labor,

Washington, D. C.

My dear Mr. Secretary:

As I am informed in a letter dated March 4th, 1907, Mr. B.F. Jones, a prominent attorney of Independence, Oregon, is desirous of securing permission to occupy about half an acre of the beach of the Government Light-House Reservation at Newport, Oregon, officially know, I believe, as the Yaquina Light-House Reservation. He desires to erect at this point a shoot-the chutes, for the benefit of summer visitors at the nearby resort. Mr. Jones does not wish to secure any permanent rights on the Reservation, but merely wants a temporary privilege, agreeing to remove the chute whenever requested to do so by your Department.

I have had a good deal of correspondence in regard to this matter and up to the present time have met with no success. In order that you may understand exactly what has been done, I will give you the case briefly.

I made a personal request of you, as above stated, on March 4th, 1907. Under date of March 8th, Assistant Secretary Murray advised me that this Reservation had been transferred in 1888 to the War Department for its use until needed by the Light-House Board. He stated that the Department of Commerce was therefore unable to grant the request.

I then addressed a letter to the Secretary of War,

United States Senate Washington, D.C. April 6, 1907.

Hon. Lawrence O. Murray, Assistant Secretary, Department of Commerce and Labor.

Dear Sir:

On March 8th I received a letter from you in reply to a letter which I addressed to the Secretary on March 4th, asking that permission be granted Mr. B.F. Jones to use a part of the light-house reservation at Newport, Oregon. you then advised me that your Department had been informed by the Light-House Board that this reservation was transferred in 1888 to the War Department for its use until need by the Light-House Board, and, therefore, you were not able to grant the request.

I then took up the matter with the Secretary of War and today received a letter from Hon. Robert Oliver Shaw, Assistant Secretary, stating as follows:

"It appears from the report of the engineer authorities that there is some question as to whether or not this reservation is under the jurisdiction of the War Department or the Department of Commerce and Labor, and pending the solution of that question, the War Department does not feel at liberty to grant any privileges on the property."

I would be very greatly obliged if you would have the Light-House Board go into this question carefully and then decide whether or not the Newport Reservation is properly under your jurisdiction or that of the War Department. I have made a similar request of Secretary Oliver, and sincerely trust that some definite decision may be reached in the near future, as I am anxious that the application of Mr. Jones be passed upon at an early date. I assume that he would like to have this privilege

RG 26 RECORDS OF THE UNITED STATES COAST GUARD

Lighthouse Seriest

LETTERS SENT TO DISTRICT INSPECTORS AND ENGINEERS 1853-1910

Press Copies District 13 Engineer July 1, 1884 - June 30, 1887 Vol. 354 Box 252 NC-31 Entry 23